Monday, April 26, 2010

Mindset Monday: Your Perception is Your Reality

Is your glass half full or half empty?  You've heard this phrase before.  The lesson is a valid one, so stay with me here...

How you perceive the things that happen in your life – good and bad – not only shows your underlying mindset about your life, but also plays the most important role in whether you ever reach your goals.

Let’s use the glass to demonstrate this concept. Imagine the glass has Nana's famous, tasty and sweet lemonade in it, and you really like Nana's lemonade. What are your thoughts when you see it?

If you’re optimistic, of course you see it as half full. You may have thoughts like these:
  • “Oh, boy! I’ve got some of Nana's delicious lemonade to quench my thirst!  She really loves me!”
  • As you reach for the glass, you feel anticipation and gratitude for this good and tasty drink.
  • Your thoughts are happily focused on what you have in this moment, not on what you lack.

The simple joy of some nice, cool lemonade and the good feelings that go along with it (because YOUR Nana made it for YOU!), cause your brain to send out energy that vibrates in harmony with good things, and attracts more good things back to you.

Now look at what happens when you’re a pessimist and see the glass as half empty. Your thoughts may be closer to these:
  • “Oh, great (sarcastically). I’m so thirsty and all I’ve got is half a glass of lemonade.”
  • As you reach for the glass, you feel dissatisfaction. You wish you had more.
  • Your thoughts are on what you lack.

Not only do you miss out on any enjoyment from the lemonade, but your mind sends out energy that vibrates in harmony with dissatisfaction and lack. What do you think you’ll attract back to you? More things to be unhappy about and more lack!

This also explains why wishing for something too hard can push it away from you forever. When you’re wishing for something you don’t have, you’re focusing on your lack of it. Focusing on your lack of it only attracts more lack of it back to you!

This simple glass of lemonade shows how your perception is your reality. Two different people can have two totally different experiences from the same circumstance. One person’s experience adds to the happiness of a joyful life and the other’s adds more problems to their unsatisfying existence.

It also explains why some people can make lemonade (and enjoy it) when life hands them lemons, while some just can’t.

When you apply this lesson to your own life, what do you find? Are you attracting good things or more lack? Could you use some ways to change your mindset?

Each Monday over the next few weeks I'll share with you some of the techniques I've learned and used to turn my thinking around.  I'm sharing them with you because I truly want to help you reach your goals.  These concepts seem simple and they may even sound corny; but they've changed my life....especially when I practice them intentionally instead of just reading them and moving on to the next "glossy, shiny" thing.

Until next time...


Aspire to Plan!

2 comments:

Debra said...

Wendy,

I agree. You attract what you think about most. Great post!

Anonymous said...

Thank You so much for this post. I am a week and some change late, lol, but it was right on time!!! Thanks again!

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